Armed police shut down a London street in a standoff with a man with a knife

Armed police in London were trying to deal with a man with a knife on Monday evening, in a situation that had closed off a main street for almost 12 hours.

Videos shared online showed a man at a window of a flat on Lewisham High Street holding a knife and waving it around inside his home.

The flat is on the third floor above some shops.

Lewisham High Street was first closed just before 11 am on Monday, and by 9 pm that evening, part of it was still shut.

Armed police were waiting nearby, close to Lewisham police station.

The situation meant some people couldn’t get to their homes because of police barriers.

The Metropolitan Police said they thought the man was alone in the flat and officers were talking to him.

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A witness, Callum Fahim, told the BBC he saw a man leaning from a third-floor window waving a large knife.

“There are two armed police officers with a gun aimed at him, and they’ve been like that for a long time now,” he said.

“I can’t see any signs of any negotiations or anything taking place. There’s fire engines, police and ambulances.

“And now some police horses have turned up.”

A food seller at Lewisham Market said the standoff had lasted for hours.

“It’s a waiting game,” she said. “He’s hiding himself around the corner because he knows they’re pointing guns at him. At first, nobody knew what was going on.

“They keep moving the police cordon back,” she added.

The HSBC bank opposite the flat closed as a safety measure, saying none of their staff or customers were involved.

By Monday evening, Lewisham Council said the situation was still ongoing.

The Metropolitan Police said at around 7 pm: “Police were called to a disturbance on Lewisham High Street, at around 10:45hrs on Monday, 10 February.

“Officers are currently in attendance at the scene alongside the London Ambulance Service and the London Fire Brigade.

“We are speaking to a man inside a residential address at the location. There is no information available at this time to suggest there is anyone else inside the property.

“Lewisham High Street section of the A20 remains closed while the incident is ongoing.”